


Bishop to F1

by NevillesGran



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-19
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2019-03-21 04:48:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13733481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NevillesGran/pseuds/NevillesGran
Summary: A missing scene from the end of the show. The day is won; it's time for everyone to return to their proper places.





	Bishop to F1

In the course of his many decades of military service, Lieutenant Vato Falman had faced many daunting things. He had defended baggage trains from bandits in the south, men who fought with the brutal determination of those with nothing to live for. He had seen King Bradley, the nigh-unkillable homunculus Wrath, in close combat. He had stood his ground against screaming Ishvalan rebels, hatred burning off of them hotter than the desert air, and later, he had faced what he and his machine gun had done to them. 

Now, he stood before the Impenetrable Northern Wall of Briggs - or, more accurately, her office door here in Central. He took a deep, fortifying breath, and knocked.

The door was already half-open, giving him a glimpse of the spartan insides. No decorations for Major-General Olivier Armstrong, no portraits or pennants. Nothing to hinder her efficiency. Falman did not enter until the Major-General looked up from her papers and gave him a crisp, “Come in.” 

Falman came to attention before her desk. “Sir. I'm sorry to bother you-”

“At ease, lieutenant.” She stood. “I’m glad you came to see me, actually. Your timing is quite good.”

“Sir?”

“Yes.” She bent for a moment, signed something on her desk and then handed it to him with her usual clear, sharp gaze. “Here are your transferral papers. You can take them to Personnel yourself, and get it all sorted out quickly.” 

Folman had been in the military long enough to know how to keep a straight face, but nobody could out-deadpan General Armstrong.

“I’m returning north as soon I can,” she explained, in the permafrost-firm way that was her version of kindness. “If we’re away any longer, Drachma is going to start getting ideas, no matter how hard you men kicked their asses while I was investigating the traitors down here. I don’t need one of Mustang’s men in my fort anymore.”

Oh. Folman looked down at the form in his hands, to hide the unexpected twist in his gut. It was exactly what he’d been about to request - transferral back to Colonel Mustang’s personal staff, still at Central for now. There was even a recommendation for a pay raise, which he wouldn’t have dared ask for.

“You’re welcome back if you ever get tired of that lily-livered sap,” the general continued. Her eyes blazed like the clear northern sky. “You held the Front Gate while Buccaneer and those Xingese fighters dealt with Bradley. You’re a true Briggsman, Lieutenant.”

Folman’s heels snapped together, and he saluted with as much briskness as he’d ever given the colonel. “It was an honor, sir.”

She returned the salute, parade-perfect as ever. “Now, get back to work. We still have plenty to do.”

It was too true - it was only chance that the major-general’s office was in the half of Central Command that  _hadn’t_  been blown up in the fight with...that being Edward Elric had punched out. Falman was only here on a break from directing the clearing of rubble. Even Colonel Mustang was still in the infirmary. 

“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.” 

Transfer papers in hand - he’s take them to Personnel when he went off-shift - Lieutenant Falman returned to his post.

**Author's Note:**

> Probably Armstrong is too far up Falman's chain of command for him to be talking to her about this directly, but have you considered: it's a great scene and should happen.
> 
> Reviews welcome, concrit included!


End file.
